Tough Tigers bounce back

Rochester's Jackson McEwan clears the ball out of the centre during Saturday's match against the Shepparton Swans. Photos: Bruce Povey.

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DIDN’T the Tigers need a result like that.

After a series of tough matches where the outcomes may have finals implications, Rochester reminded the rest of the Goulburn Valley League just how deadly it can be with a 117-point demolition of the lowly Shepparton Swans .

Nine players got their names on the goalkicking list as the Tigers booted 20 for the day.

However, they were also incredibly inaccurate, with 19 behinds to go with them.

But what matters is that in the battle for the final spots in the top six, the Tigers added a massive percentage boost.

With how close the season is becoming, that percentage boost is going to be important.

Coach James Flaherty said the win was important for his club, but the opponent has an impact.

‘‘It was really good for the boys to get the win,’’ he said.

‘‘Unfortunately the Swans are really struggling this year. They’ve had a lot of big losses and that’s very unfortunate for them as a club.

‘‘But it was important for us as a club to go out and put on that kind of performance and to get that result.’’

Flaherty said one of the most pleasing things about the win was that the side weren’t reliant on one player.

‘‘We’ve been going to Steve Stroobants a lot this season and he has been incredible for us,’’ he said.

‘‘But as a team we need to be more dynamic. We need multiple guys being able to kick goals for us.

‘‘On Saturday we had exactly that.

‘‘It’s something we will especially need at the end of the year to challenge teams.’’

Every club has now played each other, so the fixture essentially goes back to the start.

And that will be music to the Tigers ears.

They started the first six round of the season with a 4-2 record and if the club can repeat this it will go a long way to building to a possible finals opportunity.

A huge task awaits the team with this weeks clash against Shepparton.

The Bears sit in third place, but have had three losses this season that have shown the team is beatable.

It will be another tough game for the Tigers, but a win would be a huge building block for the remainder of the 2018 season.